The Dragon Warrior, Young Justice's Newest Member
by Dark Lord of the X-Men
Summary: What happens when a new member joins the team? Who is he? Why does he act so suspicious? Who is he? Why does he hate Batman so much? WHO IS HE? This is the story of The Dragon Warrior. Rated T because I am paranoid... PLEASE REVIEW!
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Young Justice, the Justice League, or anything within DC universe, or the DC comics.

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BEEEEP BEEEEP BEEEEP "Security Breech! Unknown person travelling through Zeta Beams! Security Breech!" BEEEEP BEEEEEP

Alarms blared through the watchtower, jarring the young justice team awake. After a long and challenging battle with more Lex Corps robots and dealing with Lex Luthor himself, the majority of the team had decided to crash in their rooms at the tower, although, some were now wishing they hadn't. The last time there was an invasion of the Tower, the whole league had been essentially useless, and Vandal Savage was still unaccounted for.

"What's happening?" Cassie asked, as her mentor flew past in a hurry, already loosing her golden lasso.

"I have no idea, but I'm going to find out." Replied Batgirl, still adjusting her mask as she left her room. Just as she walked past Artemis' room, the half Vietnamese girl came out in full Tigress garb, looking ready for whatever lay ahead of her.

"I'm, coming too! Wait up!" Cassie complained, pulling on her shirt while trying to run to catch up at the same time.

"How could this have happened? Isn't the tower's zeta tubes insanely protected?" Cassie questioned.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean that they are impenetrable. The first time I ever used a zeta tube, I hacked into the mountain's zetas from Gotham. It is possible, it just takes a lot of skill, time, and patience." Batgirl replied, not losing the battle hardened look in her eye, despite reminiscing about her first time using the zeta beams.

M'gann flew out of her own room and stopped the girls just as they were reaching the hallway that connected the girls' wing to the boys.

In the next hall, the boys where in the same sort of organised disarray, yet still managed to make it to the connecting location at almost the same time as the girls. Aqualad, Robin, and Superboy were already dressed and looking combat ready, but Bart, Jamie, Virgil, and Gar still looked mostly asleep.

Aqualad wasted no time and already began issuing orders and preparing the team for whatever lay ahead. "Alright team, let's go. We cannot allow them to get into the tower. The league will be the main line of defense, but we must be ready to deal with any threats that might get past them. M'gann, Tigress, Beetle, Static. You four will remain towards the back of the lines." There were several muttered complaints and groans. "You four are our distance hitters, and in this situation, we need to be as space conservative as possible. If whoever the invaders are do manage to get past the league, we will be fighting in close quarters. Superboy, Batgirl, Robin, Wondergirl, Beast Boy, KidFlash. We will be the close range combatants. Remember, do not engage unless the league asks for help, or if they are subdued. We are only assistants in this scenario, not the main force. M'gann, link us up."

The team and the league both assembled with a view of the Zeta tubes, waiting for the person to port in. Suddenly, the familiar blinding light of the zeta tubes appeared, warning both teams inside the tower. However, only 1 silhouette appeared against the background of bright light. One sole man stepped out of the zeta tube. Dressed in what looked to be a karate style robes with a thick, decorated border, the invader had a powerful aura about him. He seemed to exude power. Dressed in black combat boots, black karate pants and shirt, with small red dragon decorations embroidered into them, a short black hood that hid his hair, and a black metal mask that covered his lower face and hid his identity, this man looked dangerous.

Batgirl quickly spoke into the minds of the others. 'guys, be ready. He has at least 1 dagger, 6 throwing knives, (2 in his boots, 2 in his sleeves, 2 in his belt), 2 swords strapped to his back, and untold other weapons and training. This guy is built to kill.'

'Then we had better hope that he doesn't try to kill anyone, or we could have a very serious fight on our hands.' Kaldur relayed, his mind projecting his thoughts to the other members of the team.

'There is something about him that seems familiar…' thought Robin.

'Dude, the guy looks like he just jumped out of Mortal Kombat! No wonder he looks familiar!' Beast Boy replied.(1)

'Doesn't he look like Scorpion?' Bart agreed.

'I know, scarab, but how right are they? He does look like a proper video game assassin!' Jamie thought back at the beetle attached to his back.

'keep the link clear.' Came Superboy's mental voice, scaring the younger members of the team back into focus.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Batman asked, the first of the heroes to regain his senses after first seeing the person.

"Its not what I want, its what I can give you." came the cryptic reply from behind the metal mask strapped to the man's face.

"Okay then, what do you have to offer us?" asked Superman, ever the peace keeper.

"Besides years of advanced combat training and uncanny knowledge of the underworld and its infiltrations into modern society, as well as the inner workings of The Light and its affiliates…" The man paused and looked directly at the young justice team, standing behind the league members. "I can return one of your own, one whom you have lost."

There was a quiet murmuring through the crowd, especially near the young justice team.

"One whom we have lost? WHO?" whispered Cassie.

"I bet you any amount of money he is talking about Wally." Robin whispered to Batgirl, who nodded in reply.

"Do you think he can do it? Do you really think he can bring someone back to life?" M'gann asked Conner, who simply shrugged.

"Rule number 165, always pay attention to the strange man who always speaks cryptically. It always pays off." Muttered Bart, mostly to himself.

"HOLD IT!" Batman's commanding voice rang out, silencing the crowd. "First off, how do you expect us to trust you. You just broke in to one of the most secure buildings in the world, and start spewing promises that we have no idea whether or not you are intending to keep. Second, a person like you doesn't do something for free. IF we can trust you, what do you want from us?"

"Simple. I want to join your team." Another ripple of murmuring broke through the crowd, but the man just continued to talk. "I feel that I have skills that could benefit your team, and I want a place to stay. Somewhere to train and keep the rain off."

"But for how long? How do we know that you won't betray us?" Green Arrow's voice spoke up amongst the murmur of the crowd.

"Very simple, rich boy." Even behind his mask, you could see Arrow's eyes growing wide at the nick name. "In my family, betrayal means immediate death and shame to anyone. Now, it happens that I have been shamed amongst my family and forced to leave, but that does not mean that I have lost any of my values. I will not betray you. You have my word."

"Not good enough." Batman's gravelly voice broke through again, interrupting anyone before they had a chance to speak.

The man turned and looked directly at Batman before speaking. "Then I swear on my parents' graves that I will not betray you. You must know the importance and gravity of the oath to which I have just committed, Detective." The pseudo-ninja's voice was solemn and grave, sending shivers up and down the backbones of many of the people present. Batman himself stiffened first at the words of his oath, then again, even more, at the name.

"I think we will allow you onto the team on probation. What's your name, son?" asked Superman, walking up to him placing his hand on the boys shoulder.

"First, don't touch me." Stated the man, knocking Superman's hand off his shoulder. "Second, my name is Dragon Warrior, Drago if you must. Third, I will wait 48 hours. After that, I am going to need to know just who you want me to bring back."

"No need!" Tigress spoke up "I think we already know whom we want you to bring back." With barely a glance to the other members of the team, who all nodded in agreement, Tigress spoke up again. "We want you to bring back the former KidFlash..."

"Wallace West." Finished Drago, shocking everyone present that he knew who KF was. "He disappeared last year near the north pole due to one of the magnetic disruptors, I believe." Drago proceeded to walk slowly towards the team of young heroes. "I know of him and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance. He is probably the easiest person to bring back. Now. In order to bring him back, I am going to need a few supplies from you; namely, a high powered portable computer, one of the depowered disrupters, some space to work in to modify the disrupter, and all the speedsters on your teams. Within 48 hours, we can go rescue your vanishing speedster."

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No-longer a spoiler disclaimer

1 I do not own Mortal Kombat or any characters from it. legit, I don't even have the game...

Drago is an O/C that I created, and there may be another O/C down the line, who knows.


	2. Chapter 2

"I don't like him". It had been five minutes after Drago had left with the Young Justice team, and Batman had just come out of his stupor.

Superman, who was just leaving to return to his room, turned to Batman. "You don't like anyone. I am not even sure if you even like me." The man of steel chuckled.

"No, I don't like him, I don't trust him, I want him out of this place." Batman growled, growing more and more serious.

Superman laughed. "If you had your way, there wouldn't be anyone in this tower, and there would never be any new members. The kid will be good for the team, and you know it, even if you don't want to admit it."

"Superman is right." Wonder Woman replied, coming back up one of the halls to talk to the two men. "The boy will be a good addition to the team. Although, I must admit, I am worried. He just hacked into one of the most secure lines in the world! If he can do it, how many others can? The tower is at serious risk right now."

"That boy has got to go NOW!" Batman growled.

"Relax." Superman replied. "At least let the kid stay the night, we can question him in the morning. Now, I am going to bed. Gotta be up early in the morning to get to work."

"I should probably go to sleep as well. Goodnight." Wonder Woman agreed and turned to leave.

"He is one of Ra'as All Ghul's top men." Batman growled, causing the other two heroes to freeze.

"What? How do you know?" Came Superman's cautious reply.

"The nicknames. Especially mine. Ra'as All Ghul is the only man in the world who calls me 'Detective'. It was his little nickname for me. If this guy is close enough to Ra'as to know his nickname for me, then he has to be one of his best men. Likewise, he knows enough about my alter ego to know that my parents are dead, hence why he said that I should understand the gravity of his oath. This kid knows too much about me, the league and its members, and about the safety features of the tower to be any good to anyone." Just as Batman finished this last sentence, there was a rush of wind, and the scarlet speedster was suddenly pinning Batman to the wall.

"But he promised to bring back Wally! I would rather wait to see if he really can do as he promised than miss the chance to have Wally back." The Flash answered sharply. "We both know what it's like to lose family, so why not feel the joy of getting one back?"

"But at what cost? Is it really worth getting one man back, just to lose everyone else?" Batman questioned. "What about your family. You have Iris and the kids now, Barry. You have to think about them. Are you really willing to sacrifice everyone for the sake of one person? Think that through logically. And remember. Ever since I apprehended Ra'as All Ghul 3 months ago, he has been held prisoner here on the tower. If this guy is one of his top men, this could be an elaborate break out scheme."

A commanding voice cut through their reverie. "I too am not sure if keeping this man is safe to keep on the tower." All eyes turned towards The Martian Manhunter, and his niece, who walked into the zeta room as well.

"Thank you J'onn. I knew someone on this tower had to have some brains left…" Batman growled.

"May be so bold as to say something?" Miss Martian asked. After receiving a nod from Superman and a smile from Wonder Woman, she continued. "When he was talking with you, I gently searched his mind. Nothing deep, of course, but enough of his surface thoughts and emotions to know that he wasn't planning anything sinister, and held no ill will to the league or team. At least…" Here she trailed off, looking almost feeble.

"Go on, child. Don't be shy." Wonder Woman encouraged.

"Well, he seemed not to have any ill will towards MOST of the members." Miss M cringed, barely glancing up at Batman, although it was enough that the others caught it.

"Why would he hate Batman?" The Flash asked. "I mean, we all hate you, Bats, but why would he HATE you?"

"Me and the detective have a history that you do not know, nor need to know, about." The words seemed to emanate from every corner of the room, yet M'gann instantly locked her eyes onto his form, sitting on one of the narrow rock ledges inside the tower about 20 feet up. One by one, the others, beginning with Martian Manhunter, and ending with the Flash, followed Miss M's gaze up to the teen sitting on an impossibly small ledge.

"How did you even get up their?" Came the Flash's response, recovering the fastest at seeing the dark teen sitting on the rock face.

"One does not need to fly to get up here. One only needs to move with the shadows." Came the ever cryptic reply.

"That's exactly what we need to know, Drago. Are you attached to the League of Shadows?" Batman grunted out, as intimidating as ever.

"Your fear of betrayal and death surpasses even my own, detective. Truly impressive." The young man clapped, whilst jumping down from his 20 foot high perch. Batman only growled in annoyance. "If you so desperately do not trust me, how about I propose a deal? You trust the Martians here to a degree correct? Enough to tell you the truth?"

The silence coming from Batman spoke volumes.

"Good. Then its settled. The Martians may go into my head and observe my past, my story, and why I wish to be here. If they are not satisfied, they may do with me as they wish. Remember, detective, both you and I are mere mortals. Simple humans amongst aliens, gods, science experiments, and magicians. They could fry my mind if they wanted, and I wouldn't be able to do a thing about it." The whole time Drago was saying this, his eyes never left Batman's, nor did Batman's eyes leave Drago's.

"Fine. But, and it's a big but, they must have unrestricted access to everything in your mind."

"On one condition." Came the return offer. "They must not reveal any details to anyone unless I permit them to. Doctor-Patient confidentiality. The very same oath you swore the Martians to when you met them."

"Fine." Batman agreed, shocking the others around him. Before anyone else got a chance to talk, he turned to the telepaths. "If he so much as twitches the wrong way, fry his mind. I still don't trust him."

The two telepaths nodded, understanding that he doesn't want them to kill him, but more to scare him into telling the truth.

"Before you enter, I must warn you first. Most of what I have lived through, the anger I have felt, and the emotions that drive me, are far worse than anything either of you have ever seen before, even with your civil war on Mars. So, I warn you, do not be afraid about anything you have seen, for what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and since I am not dead, it merely made me stronger. So, with the warnings out of the way, let us begin."

The three people sat down on the floor, Miss Martian sitting cross-legged, Martian Manhunter crouching down, and Drago kneeling in what looked like a standard meditational position, hands in lap, eyes closed, and robes tucked underneath him.

With barely a nod passed between the two, the Martians dove into his mind, unsure of what lay ahead.


	3. Chapter 3

"OH MY God!" With a piercing scream, Miss Martian ripped herself out of Drago's mind, falling backwards onto the floor form her cross-legged position. The young green girl lay on the floor, twitching and crying. Martian Manhunter himself slowly eased himself out of the warrior's mind, with a tear running down his own cheek as well.

"What happened in there?" Batman demanded, the others still in shock over M'gann's reaction. "I want to know. NOW!"

Slowly, J'onn stood up and finally brought his gaze up to Batman. "As you know, I cannot reveal any details, but I am convinced of his devotion to the team. Beyond that, I can't say much else." With those words, J'onn quickly left the room, but you could still see the tears dripping from his eyes and leaving a trail of wet spots on the floor.

Drago slowly stood up from his meditative position on the floor. He stepped over to Miss Martian's heaving body and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. She reacted by quickly flying up to him and embracing him in a tight hug, sobbing into his shoulder.

"What did I tell you?" Drago questioned, gently. "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Since I am undoubtedly alive, that has only made me stronger." Drago continued to comfort the girl with some experience, holding her and rubbing comforting circles on her back, whilst the remaining league members stood by with some degree of uncertainty and embarrassment. "Shhh. I am right here. Alive and well. What you saw in my mind was the past, but that's all it is, the past. If you dwell too much on it, it will take over your life. You use the past to fuel you, but not control you."

With a final choking sob, Miss Martian pulled away, and with a quick glance at Drago, left for her room.

"What the heck was that?" Asked Superman.

"That was a woman who saw something that no-one should ever see. Who felt pains that no-one should ever feel, although, unfortunately, many still feel it." Drago turned to leave.

"No, I meant about holding her like that. You do realize…" Drago cut off Superman before he could finish.

"That she is in a relationship with your clone?" The leaguers stared in shock at Drago knowing such secretive information. "Yes, I know. However, that was not making an advance of any sort, merely comforting someone who needs placating." Drago turned to leave, but was stopped by Batman.

"I still don't trust you." Batman glared at the man, who was just barely shorter than him.

"And I don't trust you, detective." Drago snarled a reply, returning Batman's infamous glare with ease.

"How do you know that name?"

"You said it yourself. I was one of Ra'as Ahl Ghull's top men. I know everything."

"Then you undoubtedly know he is on this tower."

"Yes. However, I entertain no thoughts of releasing him any time soon, rest assured. He remains there for the time being, as long as I have a say about it. The most you have to worry about, detective, is me going down to visit the old man."

"Hold on." Superman stepped between the two rogues, placing what was supposed to be a calming hand on each of them. "You don't have any clearance. How do you expect to talk to him?"

"The same way that I expect you to respect my personal space, Mister Kent." The boy snarled, shrugging Superman's hand off of his shoulder. "Now, if you will excuse me, I would like to get some sleep before I work on rescuing my future teammate. Your Highness." He bowed to Wonder Woman before leaving the room in the direction of the sleeping quarters of the team and the room he was given for the night.

Superman glared at the form of the boy leaving the room. "You're right. That boy knows too much."

"I still think he will be good for the team." Wonder Woman insisted. "He is the only one amongst you fools who knows how to address royalty." Batman grunted, while Flash just laughed. "And besides, it isn't hard to figure out who you are, Clark. The only thing separating you from Superman is a pair of glasses." Wonder Woman smiled.

"And a strand of hair!" Flash piped up. "Can't forget captain perfect hair's legendary hair do."

"Shut it Barry!"

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I won't be updating for at least 2 weeks, as I will be going away for camp, but I will try to update again as soon as I possible can. Thank you for understanding. :)

Please leave a review! :)


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning came too early for certain members of both the team, and the league.

"hun hoo hmoov?"(1) Muttered a VERY sleepy Beast boy to an equally sleepy Blue Beetle.

"hnnn"(2) Came the return grunt from the blue coated teen. Despite their semi-conscious conversation, which would normally make Robin and The new Kid Flash, Bart Allen, crack up, everyone was too focused on the new face in the room, or more accurately, the lack thereof.

"Where do you think he is?" Asked Bart. "we told him breakfast was at 8:00, and its 8:20. Why isn't he here?"

"Bart, some people don't do well with schedules." Batgirl responded from her seat next to M'Gann, right across from Bart. "Just like you speedsters." Most everyone around the table chuckled. "Or maybe he slept in. You don't know what kind of life he had before coming here. He might just be enjoying his sleep, for a change." At this, M'Gann winced slightly, just enough for her boyfriend to notice.

'Everything alright, M'Gann?' Superboy spoke over his mental link with the green skinned beauty.

'everything's fine.' Returned M'Gann, despite not even sounding convincing to herself.

'M'Gann? Really? Don't lie to me now.' Connor coaxed, pleading with his girlfriend to tell him the truth.

'Well, last night I might've seen into Drago's mind.'

'WHAT!'

'Keep it down!'

'M'Gann, this is a mind chat. They can't here us.'

'You dropped your fork and spilt food all over yourself, dummy' Miss Martian giggled, causing Superboy to look down at his now soiled pants. 'I can't talk about what I saw in Drago's mind, but I can say this. He has led a harder life than any of us. I wouldn't be surprised if he is taking his sweet time, enjoying the tower and its facilities.'

'Isn't there anything you can tell me?' Superboy pleaded, sending M'gann a puppy face look over there mind link.

'Sorry buster, no can do. Uncle John is under the same oath, so he can't say anything either. However, I can tell you that it's Artemis' turn on monitor duty tonight, meaning…' M'gann left the thought to trail off, waiting for Superboy to fill in the blanks.

'… that we get some alone time.' Connor suddenly grinned, drawing some amused looks from the older members of the team, and causing Cassie to notice.

"Hey! Don't you know its rude to have a mental conversation when your around other people?" Cassie questioned.

"Yes," Connor replied, smirking. "but then it wouldn't be a private conversation would it?"

"Private conversations when around others are equally as rude." Robin stated, coming to the defense of his girlfriend.

"Alright, I'm gonna pull that card next time you go and have one of your coded conversations with Cassie when we are all watching a movie." Batgirl ribbed as she watched the younger couple turn beet red.

"Still though," Artemis pondered "I wonder where he is."

"After breakfast, we will split up and search the tower for him." Aqualad interjected. "He may have gotten lost."

(Break)

It was a long and grueling search, made even worse by the fact that Superboy and M'gann kept disappearing, Bart wouldn't stop asking if they had found him, despite refusing to move to help (something about a bet with Flash, cupcakes, and vengeance. Trust me, you do NOT want to know.), and Robin and Wondergirl refusing to split up to make the search go faster.

They finally found him in the most unlikely of places, his room. Or, more accurately, just outside of it, fiddling with the locks on his door.

"What are you doing, Drago? You missed breakfast!" A horrified Jaime gasped, unable to comprehend why he would miss such an important meal, or in fact, any meal.

"I have trained my body so that it does not need nourishment in the same forms as yours." Came the cryptic reply from the teen who now seemed to be installing the first of 4 deadbolts on his door.

"Batgirl to team, Jaime found him." Came a voice from the end of the corridor. "we can call off the search, he was at his room."

"Why are you messing with the security on your door?" Jaime asked, before a rush of wind announced the arrival of one Bart Allen.

"Not the door," Drago answered, his attention never straying from his task on the door. "The entire room."

"WHAT? SERIOUSLY? These rooms were designed by Batman himself! You couldn't get better security at Fort Knox!"

"That is exactly why I do not trust it. Batman is known for being a snoop, and I do not want him being able to track me at all times of the day. Some people value their privacy."

"WOOOOOOW! Somebody doesn't like the Bat!" Batgirl accused, sauntering down the hallway.

"Where I come from, we have orders. If you see the Batman, Kill him on sight and bring evidence. Even the babies are taught this. I am going against my most basic training for the sake of my mission here. If I cannot kill the Batman, then I will at least prevent him from spying on my works." Came the ominous return, causing Batgirl's mouth to drop, and Blue Beetle to gape at the new member openly. The rest of the team had just entered the hallway, barely in time to hear the man's little monologue, and were similarly rendered speechless. "Now, I believe we have a deal. If you want me to bring back your Mr. West, I am going to need some utilities. Do you have them available for me now?"

In a state of shock, the others could only nod.

"Good. In roughly 36 hours we will begin our journey to the North Pole to return your lost comrade. Be ready for a cold journey. Now, Robin, please bring the laptop to the room wherein I will be working. Superboy, you are going to have to escort me to the disruptor, and possibly move it around, if need be. As for the rest of you, prepare the arctic gear, ready the medical centre, and get an emergency zeta beam transporter on standby. West will not be in the best of conditions when we get him back and may be in need of medical facilities immediately."

Suddenly, everyone seemed to snap out of their shock, and begin moving about towards their assigned tasks. All, that is, save for one man. One of the original team members, and the only person there who was more comfortable under the water, than above it. One man who could only gape at the way that the bat-hating member suddenly had the entire team bending to his will.

"Wait! When did he become leader here! I am the one who gives the orders!"

(1): "Can you move?"

(2): "fine."

No longer a spoiler disclaimer: I do not own Fort Knox.

I apologize if any of the characters seem a little too OOC, but I needed to really set the stage here for future happenings.


	5. Chapter 5

It was cold, brutal, and bone-chilling, and that was just the atmosphere inside the bioship. Ever since the discovery of the extent to which Drago seemed to hate Batman, most of the team began acting with a cold, indifference towards the dragon emblazoned teen. Drago, on the other hand, seemed either impervious, or ignorant of the attitude directed towards him. The only person who wasn't being cold and brutal towards him was M'gann, who was presently piloting the ship.

Suddenly, Drago's voice cut through the cold silence. "Team! Suit up in arctic gear. We land in 5."

"I was gonna say that, you know." M'gann joked, causing the team to snap out of their silent cocoons and go get ready.

"I realize this, but you were taking too long." Drago played along with M'gann's joke, giving, what appeared to be, a slight grin behind his metal face mask.

* * *

Dressed in his normal outfit, Drago was the only one who did not appear to have changed into any form of winter clothing, causing the team to cast him puzzled looks.

"I know you don't want to ruin your mobility, or make your weapons less accessible, or (probably) just don't want to ruin your appearance, but at least put a coat on. You don't want you to get sick." Batgirl sarcastically advised the assassin, who was double checking the modified disruptors.

"I have spent the last 10 years living primarily at the peak of the mountains where I come from. Cold weather does not bother me. However, if you so insist…" Drago produced a leather jacket, seemingly out of nowhere. He gave another slight grin, identifiable only by the rise of his cheek above his mask, before quickly crushing it, slipping on the jacket, and solemnly filing out of the bioship, to join the rest of the team.

"Is this the exact spot where the disruptor was last time?" Drago asked, turning back to the assembled heroes.

"Yeah, I am pretty sure that the giant crater in the ground would have given that away." Bart muttered, then winced when Drago sent him a glare. The black-clad warrior then began issuing orders.

"Alright, we need to set this stuff up. Superboy, set the disruptor down in the exact same spot that the old disruptor was. Aqualad, KidFlash, Blue beetle, Beastboy, I want you four to start setting up tents. Once the rest of The League arrives, we will begin the process, but until then I think we would all enjoy some shelter, and so would The League, once they get here. Since this is a controlled experiment, I think The League would also enjoy having some data and information sent their way. Batgirl, Robin, Miss Martian, start setting up computers and analytical equipment. The rest of you, start setting up some warm food and drinks, and get Tigress to calm down. At this rate, she is going to have a nervous breakdown."

As everybody jumped to complete their assigned tasks, Drago walked back to the ship, and returned in a few moments with the computer given to him to help plan this endeavour. Setting up shop next to Batgirl and robin, he quickly began running through more and more simulations, numbers, weather conditions, and other such factors that might have an influence on the results of their mission. Batgirl and Robin watched him closely, waiting for him to make any sort of move that could mean failure or betrayal. While there was no example of this, per se, they did notice that as he continued to crunch numbers, he became more and more agitated and frustrated.

"This can't be happening…" Drago muttered.

"What can't be happening? You mess something up? Can't deliver on your promise?" Batgirl teased, the words dripping like venom from her mouth.

"Not in the least, the whole operation is perfect. Only problem is the same reason that West disappeared in the first place." Drago responded, his eyes never leaving the screen. Batgirl and Robin glanced at each other, then walked over to watch the screen from over Drago's shoulders. "The very same energy that removed West is endangering the whole process. These weather conditions," Drago pointed to the gently falling snow outside, "are only going to worsen in the next half hour. This means that the speedsters are going to need more power behind them to be able to create the energy needed to counteract the force of the disruptor. This means that more speedsters are required to reach the necessary energy levels and maintain them. But that means that some of them are going to be far slower than the others, and thus have the same problem that West did, they will attract the extra energy from the vortex and bring about the same results. Trading 1 person for another." Drago explained.

Both Batgirl and Robin were shocked at the amount of care he seemed to be putting into this mission, and his apparent lack of interest in losing one of his newest teammates. They never expected this kind of attention from the man who looked more apt to kill them then to rescue them. Especially since he had proclaimed his hatred for their mentor.

"What if we add so many speedsters that they can each take only a small hit, ensuring that not everybody becomes overly influenced by the energy?" Robin asked, coming to his senses.

"Tried that, but the energy goes to the slowest conduit every time. After about 1 minute, blue beetle disappears. 30 seconds after him, Superboy follows suit. Then Captain Marvel, Superman, Flash, and KF. By the time we reach Superman's turn, the whole thing could then technically be shut down without causing any more damage to anyone, but it's still too risky."

"What about just having the fastest runners?" Batgirl responded, analyzing the data on the screen. "Couldn't we just send the top 3 out and things should be ok?"

"Again, it's risky. This weather means that everything is being forced to slow down. We could always postpone to a later date, but I don't think anyone wants that. The most logical thing to do, realistically, would be to have the green lanterns, the Martians, and anyone who can control the weather or create a force field, to create a protective dome around us so that the elements don't interfere with the whole process. I don't know what kind of stress that would put on them, but it does seem to be the only logical solution left." Drago sighed, resigning himself to the fact that plans seemed to be changing on the fly.

"What about Doctor Fate and Zatana? Do you think that, with their magic, they might be able to hold up the weather?" Batgirl asked, unsure if they could actually do that.

"I must admit, it is a distinct possibility. I myself do not know the extent of their powers, but I think they might be able to conjure up something that could aid the situation."

"Alright, I will give them a call then." Robin stated, turning away to grab his communicator and contact The League.

"Batgirl, could you ensure that all the equipment is prepared? I am going to see to the fact that everything else is setup." Drago asked, getting up himself and grabbing 'his' computer.

* * *

20 minutes later, the entire team and most of The League (including Nightwing) was assembled outside the miniature encampment of tents that bordered the crater marking the scene of the tragedy that took the life of one Wallace Rudolph West almost a year ago to the date. The scene was sombre, silent, and snow fell at a rate far faster and harder than when the black clad assassin and his 2 bat apprentice comrades. Drago walked up to the front of the line that the superheroes made subconsciously and began issuing orders and tasks.

"Alright, before we begin we need to finish getting ready. I need this weather stopped immediately we can't get our speedsters up to the right speed with this kind of weather. Doctor Fate, Zatanna, is it possible for you two to create some sort of spell that will block this weather for the duration of our procedure? Yes? No? Well, give it a try. Martians, Green Lantern, back them up. If their spell breaks, I want a force field around this place that will prevent the weather from getting in here. There can be absolutely NO interference when the speedsters get running. Flash, KidFlash, Superman, Superboy, Captain Marvel, you five will be running counter clockwise so as to stabilize the vortex. HawkGirl, you are a medic, are you not? Good. Be on constant alert. When West reappears, I can tell you that he will not be in the best of conditions. We should have an emergency zeta beam transporter on standby, do we not?" Upon receiving a nod from Aqualad, Drago continued." Good. Prepare to be teleported back to the watchtower immediately upon his return. Team, I need you to hold back Tigress. She will be distraught, as anyone would, but she must not interfere! West will need immediate medical attention, and HawkGirl will need unrestricted access. I hate to do it, but Tigress, you are banned from the scene, and must return to the bioship for both your safety, and West's. BeastBoy, Static, go with her. Batgirl, Robin, Nightwing, Detective, Wondergirl, go man the computers and equipment. Everyone else, please go to the tents for the time being, for safety, and to get out of the cold. There are seats, hot drinks, and refreshments in that tent over there." Turning to the speedsters, who were getting into position, Drago spied Superman. "Cal'el! Remove the cape! I do not want anything at all to hinder this operation!" After receiving the cape from Superman and giving it to one of the other league members making their way to the tents, Drago moved to a separate tent, picked up a communicator, and gave the order.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! It is time to begin. Activating the disruptor now."


End file.
